Germanico bello confecto

Guys I have a favor to ask, can you help me out with this text?

Germanico bello confecto --- Ablativus absolutus?
multis de causis Caesar statuit sibi Rhenum esse transeundum; --- I skipped sibi
quarum illa fuit iustissima,
quod,
cum videret Germanos tam facile impelli, - impelli passive infinitive of impellere?
ut in Galliam venirent,
suis quoque rebus eos timere voluit, --- I skipped quoque =(
cum intellegerent et posse et audere populi Romani exercitum --- Why imperfect? =(
Rhenum transire.

After the Germanic war was over,
due to many reasons Caesar decided to pass the Rhine;
the most cogent of them was
that
when he saw the Germanic people to move so easily
to be able to come to Gaul
he wanted them to fear for their own sake
when they realize the Roman army can and dares to pass the Rhine.

I know my translation is a disaster. Help
(Am I supposed to post such questions somewhere else?)

Re: Help with Translation

Your translation seems about right to me. If think that ‘cum’ here is probably ‘as/since’ in a causal and explanatory sense. This requires the subjunctive. The imperfect makes sense to me, as we are talking about the background to a decision. Remember to stick to the past tense in the last sentence.

‘Impellī’ is indeed the passive infinitive of ‘impellō’. So, he saw that the Germans were so easily urged/persuaded to come/driven over into Gaul.

For the full text, see http://grid.montclair.edu/latintexts/caesar/gallic/gallic4.html.

Re: Help with Translation

CHAMÆLEO dixit:

Your translation seems about right to me. If think that ‘cum’ here is probably ‘as/since’ in a causal and explanatory sense. This requires the subjunctive. The imperfect makes sense to me, as we are talking about the background to a decision. Remember to stick to the past tense in the last sentence.

‘Impellī’ is indeed the passive infinitive of ‘impellō’. So, he saw that the Germans were so easily urged/persuaded to come/driven over into Gaul.

For the full text, see http://grid.montclair.edu/latintexts/caesar/gallic/gallic4.html.

Click to expand...

Thank you for helping me, could you please tell me how to translate sibi and quoque^^

Re: Help with Translation

"Sibi" here is a Dative of Agency with a Passive Periphrastic.

Caesar statuit sibi Rhenum esse transeundum - (indirect Statement here) Caesar decided that the Rhine was having to be crossed by him/them(self/selves).

When you have a passive periphrastic the Dative case can be used to express Agency.

Example: hoc mihi dicendum est - This thing is having to be (ought to be) said by me.

quoque = likewise/besides/also/too; not only; even/actually; (after word emphasized)

Re: Help with Translation

divinityofnumber dixit:

"Sibi" here is a Dative of Agency with a Passive Periphrastic.

Caesar statuit sibi Rhenum esse transeundum - (indirect Statement here) Caesar decided that the Rhine was having to be crossed by him/them(self/selves).

When you have a passive periphrastic the Dative case can be used to express Agency.

Example: hoc mihi dicendum est - This thing is having to be (ought to be) said by me.

quoque = likewise/besides/also/too; not only; even/actually; (after word emphasized)

Click to expand...

I couldn't find quoque in my dictionary.
And thx for giving me information about that "periphrastic" Dative.

Re: Help with Translation

DoN is correct except that I think sibi refers to Caesar himself and not "them", though implicitly it includes his army as well. "Caesar decided that the Rhine had to be crossed by himself"..."Caesar decided that he had to cross the Rhine."

Also, suis rebus probably means "their own possession", i.e. the towns, livestock, women and whatever else the German warriors would have left behind to go raiding in Gaul. Verbs of fearing may take the dative to indicate what someone is afraid for, and that's how it's being used here. Caesar wants the Germans to realize that he is both able and willing to cross the Rhine and threaten their own territory if they continue to make war in Gaul.


Edit: intellegerent is imperfect simply to follow the sequence of tenses.